Gomez injured, Wolak steps in

Raging Bull challenges JC Chavez Dec 4

Top-10 contender Pawel “Raging Bull” Wolak will be In Harm’s Way on Saturday, December 4, when he challenges undefeated WBC Silver middleweight champion Julio César Chávez, Jr. in a 12-round title fight. Wolak replaces the injured Alfonso Gomez, Chávez’s original opponent, who withdrew today after an MRI detected a ligament tear in his left elbow.

Wolak (27-1, 17 KOs), from Mount Arlington, NJ, enters this fight riding a two-year, six-bout winning streak, with three of those victories coming by knockout. The combined record of the last three opponents he defeated — James Moore, Ishmail Arvin and Carlos Nascimento – had a combined record of 56-4-4 when he fought them, which translates into an impressive 88% winning percentage. His last fight, a 10-round unanimous decision victory over Moore (17-2), was fought on the historic Yuri Foreman-Miguel Cotto undercard at Yankee Stadium on June 5. He is currently world-rated No. 7 by the WBA.

A former New York State middleweight champion, Wolak, 29, is known as aggressive, high-pressure style fighter who always makes for exciting fights. Trained by Tommy Brooks, Wolak, an East Coast fixture, will be making his West Coast debut when he rumbles with Chávez Jr.